Three Nonprofits Will Share Bank of Hawaii 2011 Mike Lyons Community Award

Community Clinic of Maui, Hale Mahaolu Akahi, Inc. and Hui Malama Learning Center will share the 2011 Bank of Hawaii Mike Lyons Maui Community Award. Photo provided by Bank of Hawaii Foundation.

By Sonia Isotov

The Bank of Hawaii Foundation announced today the three Maui County nonprofits will be receiving this year’s Mike Lyons Maui Community Award. The total donation was increased this year to $25,000.

Community Clinic of Maui, dba Malama I Ke Ola Helath Center received $5,000, and Hale Mahaolu Akahi, Inc. and Hui Malama Learning Center were each awarded $10,000. The checks were presented at a special reception held at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center on May 18.

Community Clinic of Maui, dba Malama I Ke Ola Health Center, provides health care services for the working poor, uninsured and homeless on Maui.

Hale Mahaolu Akahi provides affordable rental housing plus related facilities and support services for the elderly on Maui.

Hui Malama Learning Center provides educational alternatives by focusing on developing the whole person with life skills experience in addition to academic success.

This is the eighth annual Bank of Hawaii Mike Lyons Maui Community Award presentation. Last year’s recipients were Fun Day Foundation, A Keiki’s Dream; Hale Makua Health Services; Maui County Salvation Army; and Maui Economic Concerns of the Community.

The award is presented annually by the Bank of Hawaii Foundation in honor of the late, retired Bank of Hawaii Senior Vice President and Maui District Manager Michael H. Lyons II.  Lyons was a dedicated community leader and served as a role model throughout his 41-year career with the bank.

Throughout his career, Lyons served on the boards of numerous community groups and was instrumental in founding several nonprofit organizations on Maui. Among his many roles, he served as founder and chairman of the Maui Economic Development Board; governor of District 500 (Hawaii) Rotary International; president of the Maui Chamber of Commerce, Kahului Rotary Club, and the J. Walter Cameron Center; chairman of Maui United Way; and treasurer and board member of the Maui Arts & Cultural Center.  Lyons passed away on March 26, 2004.